Triggered Ex-Army Officer Wants to Play Lawyer, Judge Says Not So Fast

Shane James Jr., the former U.S. Army officer accused of a multicounty shooting rampage on Dec. 5 that left six people dead, finally graced the courtroom with his presence on Friday, over eight months after his arrest. And boy, did he have some demands!

James told Judge Clifford Brown of the 147th Travis County Criminal District Court that he wasn't happy with his lawyers. He even had the audacity to ask if he could represent himself. The cherry on top? He disagreed with his lawyers' request for a mental competency check, calling it "baseless." * Eye roll emoji *

But Judge Brown wasn't having any of it. He told James that if he wants to play lawyer, he'll have to undergo that mental competency check anyway. Brown recommended James stick with his lawyers, but we all know how well that's been going.

James is facing a laundry list of charges in Travis County: four capital murder charges, two attempted capital murder charges, and one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Oh, and let's not forget the three out-of-county misdemeanors and the capital murder charge in Bexar County. This guy's been busy!

Looking at James now, you'd hardly recognize him from his mugshot eight months ago. He's shed some pounds and grown a beard, trying to look the part of a hardened criminal. He addressed the court like a timid mouse, stumbling over his words. Guess he's not so tough after all.

Authorities say James, 35, started his killing spree at his parents' eastern Bexar County home, where he murdered Phyllis James, 55, and Shane James Sr., 56. He then drove to Austin and killed four more people — Emmanuel Pop Ba, 33; Sabrina Rahman, 25; Katherine Short, 56; and Lauren Short, 30 — and injured three others, including two police officers.

James told investigators he had been feeling "impending doom" before killing his parents. His siblings spilled the tea to authorities, revealing that James had schizophrenia and had been "mentally decompensating" since his discharge from the army in 2015.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.